A liquid crystal display (hereinafter, also referred to as “LCD”) is a device that displays characters and images using electro-optic properties of liquid crystal molecules. The LCD is widely used in portable phones, notebook computers, liquid crystal television, and the like.
However, the LCD makes use of liquid crystal molecules having optical anisotropy; therefore, the LCD has a problem that the LCD exhibits an excellent display property in one direction while the screen gets dark or unclear in other directions. In order to solve such a problem, a large number of birefringent films are used in the LCD. The birefringent film is also called a retardation layer, a retardation film, an optical compensation film or the like.
Hitherto, an optical laminate has been known wherein the following are laminated: a retardation film having an index ellipsoid satisfying a relationship of nx>nz>ny, and a retardation film having an index ellipsoid satisfying a relationship of nx=ny>nz (Patent Document 1).
As the retardation film having an index ellipsoid satisfying a relationship of nx>nz>ny, a polymeric film drawn to the thickness direction thereof as performed by the following method is generally used. That is, there is used a film obtained by adhering a contractile films onto both sides of a polymeric film, respectively, and drawing the resultant so as to be swelled into the thickness direction of the polymeric film by a contraction of the contractile films. For this reason, this retardation film is liable to become thick. Thus, an optical laminate wherein this retardation film is laminated cannot satisfy a desire that the optical laminate should be made thin and light.
Patent Document 1: JP-A-2002-90531